Jobs under threat at Aegon’s Lytham base

UP to 213 jobs are being cut by pensions firm AEGON UK at Lytham in Lancashire and at Edinburgh.

The jobs will be cut in marketing, IT and in Personnel functions, while a further 106 jobs are being outsourced to document management specialist Océ.

A spokeswoman for the company said that she could not break down how many posts would be cut at Lytham while a consultation process with staff was ongoing.

The company said that the cuts were part of a longer-term drive to reduce its operating costs by 25% but added that it would keep compulsory redundancies to a minimum.

AEGON UK chief executive Adrian Grace said: “This is a challenging time for our people and our business but achieving a lower cost base is essential to ensure AEGON remains a strong and successful business in the years ahead.”

Aegon currently employs around 600 people in Lytham and 2,300 in Edinburgh.

Workers’ union Unite said it was “appalled” by the company’s decision.

“Of the 213 jobs cut there will be a significant number of jobs offshored to India from its life and pensions division,” said national officer David Fleming.

“This decision will have a devastating impact on the AEGON workforce at its key sites in Lytham and Edinburgh. Unite will continue to oppose any compulsory redundancies and will insist that AEGON looks at every opportunity to mitigate these.”